The Solid Waste Authority of Central Ohio (SWACO) is awarding more than $275,000 in grants to 14 local community partners as part of the Community Waste Reduction (CWR) grant program. This annual competitive grant funds innovative projects each year that significantly reduce waste or increase the diversion of waste from the Franklin County Landfill. The recipients are local governments and nonprofits, schools, hospitals and faith-based organizations, and SWACO prioritizes applications with an emphasis on partnership and collaboration.
The projects funded by this year’s CWR grants prioritize waste reduction and reuse, including by supporting the purchase of a new food waste digester at Doctor’s Hospital, expanded recycling stations in classrooms and common spaces at the Columbus College of Art and Design, and new recycling and landfill receptacles at Groveport and Gahanna city parks and in the Linden neighborhood of Columbus.
“Reducing the amount of waste that SWACO takes in is one of our core missions and will extend the life of the landfill, which is an asset for our whole community,” said SWACO executive director, Joe Lombardi. “The Community Waste Reduction grant program provides key funding to kick-start waste reduction efforts all over Franklin County, and we’re excited to see the program continue to grow.”
Successful Community Waste Reduction grant applications emphasize partnership-building and collaboration, and leverage the waste stream for community and economic benefit. They must be within SWACO’s jurisdiction, which is comprised of Franklin County and includes the cities of Canal Winchester, Dublin, New Albany, Reynoldsburg and Westerville, and the grant recipients are required to provide a 20 percent cash match and document the project’s impact.
Last year, SWACO awarded more than $250,000 in CWR grants to 12 local governments and nonprofit organizations for initiatives to divert waste material from the landfill, including a new donation incentive program from Goodwill Columbus that rewards residents for donating their unused goods instead of sending them to the landfill. In addition, last year’s grants supported a reusable coffee cup program at a number of local coffee shops, a program to make donated sporting goods available to under-resourced schools and youth groups, and educational programing at two Franklin County middle schools to teach the students about the waste stream.
Next year, the maximum funding amount available through a Community Waste Reduction grant will be $50,000, a more-than 40 percent increase over previous years, and SWACO will be studying ways that this grant program can best support waste reduction efforts by their county’s faith-based communities. Applications for next year’s CWR grants will be accepted beginning in May of 2026, with an application deadline in August. To learn more about the CWR grant program, including eligibility, deadlines, and video statements from past grantees, visit SWACO.org.
Published April 2026
